The subject matter disclosed herein relates to an infant warmer with a thermal storage device.
Conventional infant incubators comprise a confined enclosure adapted to retain an infant in a controlled environment. A convective heating system generates heated air to regulate temperature within the enclosure. The heating system includes an electric heater configured to heat the air, and a fan configured to circulate the heated air.
One problem with conventional infant incubators is that the primary power source for the heating system can be unreliable, particularly in developing countries. Unreliable electrical power may compromise the regulated temperature within the controlled environment.
Another problem with conventional infant incubators is that the primary power source for the heating system can be inconsistent with periods of excess power (i.e., power spikes), and periods of inadequate power. Traditional infant incubators are incapable of converting a power spike to thermal energy without overheating the infant such that much of the excess electrical power is wasted. Wasting excess power to avoid overheating is a suboptimal use of energy that diminishes the efficiency of the system.